Little worried

[Elisabeth83]

My cories were living with guppies but I got rid of my guppies to my lfs and put my swordies in the tank instead and bought 5 platies as well.

Before the cories could hold their own with the guppies and ate the majority of the wafers I dropped in. Now though the swordies and platies are so aggressive that they push the cories out and eat the wafers themselves.

I'm afraid the cories arn't getting enough food and for the past 3 days I've been throwing in extra wafer but I dont want to do that as I think I'm feeding too much and it will start to cause problems

I've tried turning the lights off and feeding them but the swordies still go for the wafer. The only other idea I have is that maybe I need to turn the light off and then throw in the wafers a couple hours after the lights are off. I wonder if then the swordies and platies will be sleeping??

I usually turn the lights off at 10pm and am in bed at around 11:30-12 so I would still be awake to throw in the wafers.

Any suggestions??

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Elisabeth83

Putting them in late at night is a good plan.

Let me ask if they are algae wafers you are feeding, or one that has other ingredients as well? Corys cannot get along on a diet of just vegetable matter. They need a more well balanced diet with some meat or other high protien content included.

You might try feeding live or frozen bloodworms, tubifex or black worms. Your other fish will enjoy them as well. Freeze dried tubifex worms are good too. To feed them, hold the cube under the water and rub and shake it until the worms separate and float down through the water. One cube probably has enough tubifex in it to feed not only the corys, but all the other fish who will zoom in on them on their way down.

Corys also benefit from the vitamins and minerals in flake food, so when you feed it to the others, take some in your hand and, with your hand well under the water, open it quickly and flick the flakes downward for them.

 

[steppy104]

hikari makes wafers for carnivores. thats what i'm currently using....

maybe distract them? feed them on the opposite side of the tank, then drop the wafers for the corys...i dunno...or sticking to the night plan. that sounds nice.

 

[Elisabeth83]

I'm currently feeding my cories the same ones steppy is talking about. They are Hikari sinking wafers specially for bottom dwellers. They have shrimp and fish in them as well as vitamins.

I do usually wet my fingers first and put the flakes in the water so that they fall to the bottom but I've never actually stuck my hand towards the bottom. I'll definately give that a go

I am going to try and start feeding them later at night once the lights are off as I think that will be the only way they will get fed. Before I would feed them in the evenings with the lights still on as they were tough enough to defend themselves from the guppies but now they have no chance living with swordies and platies

I did try what you said steppy by putting wafers in on different sides of the tank but to no such luck. Swordtails are funny fish...they are such hunters and it didn't take long (few mins) before they stole the wafers away from the cories.

I would love to feed bloodworms but I have no idea of how to get them to actually make it to the bottom of the tank before the swordies and platies gobble them up. I wonder if I broke off a large chunk and stuck a nail in it if it would sink to the bottom and the cories would then be able to eat them I guess I'll give that a try too. I saw the freeze dried tubifex at my lfs I'll pick up a container of them next time I'm there.

Sounds like feeding them a few hours after lights out is the only way. Now it's just getting used to it and remembering

Thanks for all the good advice

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Elisabeth83

Hikari is an excellent brand and I would include their bottom feeder wafers in my cory's diet if only I could buy them locally.

Your best bet when feeding bloodworms, flake or tubifex is to just feed enough so that the top feeders have their fill and there is still enough that there will be adequate food falling to the bottom for the corys.

None of the food that the corys eat will do anything but benefit these other fish, so in other words, just feed them more.

 

[Elisabeth83]

Inchworm - yeah I am so glad I found these Hikari wafers for my cories I hadn't seen them before and then all of a sudden 2 shops were carrying them. I just hope they keep selling them or I'll be out of luck!!! It's funny though because none of the shops around here sell Hikari betta pellets I had to get them off ebay. I hope they last me awhile as I don't see them on ebay very often.

Well I think I've found a solution to my cories not getting enough food. I went to my lfs yesterday and bought some tropical fish pellets. What I do is soak them in water for 30 seconds and then dump them in the tank and since they are already wet they sink down. A lot make it to the bottom before the other fish get them. Also they are small enough that the cories can gobble them up before the other fish can steal them from them

I tried bloodworms the other day but had to feed so many just so some would make it to the bottom. I think it was too much...the fish were acting sluggish afterwards and I was a bit worried. I am just glad I decided to give the pellets a try. They seem to be perfect

My cories tummies look a lot fuller now

 

[steppy104]

my pet store sells hikari betta pellets...if you ever need them, just tell me or something, and maybe i could ship ya some...